"The people of Pakistan have paid a high price from terrorism and extremism. We will stand by all those who like Malala are courageously defending the rights of women, in Pakistan and around the world.”

Rehman Malik, the Pakistani interior minister, today insisted Malala would be properly protected when they return to their home country.

“I assure to the world community that when she goes back, we do have the ability to protect her," he told CNN.

She will get a cordon of female security officers to protect her, as well as an outer barrier of male officers.

The politicians were joined by His Highness Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed, the foreign minister of the United Arab Emirates, who spoke of his country's "firm belief in the right of girls to education everywhere".

Malala's father, Ziauddin Yousafzai, last week said his daughter would "rise again" and that the world's response marked a watershed for Pakistan.

"I love her," he said during an emotional news conference at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital on Friday. "Last night when we met her there were tears in our eyes out of happiness. For some time we all cried a bit.

"The person who attacked her wanted to kill her, but she fell temporarily. She will rise again and she can stand now. But when she fell, Pakistan stood and the world rose. This is a turning point."

Malala was shot as she travelled home from school on October 9 in her hometown of Mingora.

The Pakistan Taliban later claimed responsibility for the attack saying it was punishment for campaigning for the rights of girls to go to school.

She had been the anonymous author of a diary published by the BBC documenting her desire to for an education, against the wishes of the Taliban.